About a week ago I was lucky enough to spend four days in Tbilisi Georgia, as a part of an amazing Euroclio project: Innovating History Teaching in the Black Sea region. It was an incredible experience and a brilliant project, aimed at getting history educators from across the region to[…]
Teaching Issues
History Concepts / Skills
For those who are new to history teaching, understanding what skills or concepts one should be developing can sometimes be confusing. The fact is that the main skills or concepts that make history a discipline haven’t really changed for twenty years at least.These concepts should be taught and developed across[…]
What is history? McFahn’s view
I thought that this simple guide to what ‘school’s history is’ might be useful to all of those non specialists out there. I have tried to summarise what I think schools history is in a few pages of a PDF. It is really hard if you are a non specialist[…]
Distorted coverage of the debate over the proposed history curriculum on ‘The Moral Maze’
Last night, radio 4’s The Moral Maze discussed the proposals for the new national curriculum. Katherine Edwards, a history teacher campaigning against the awful proposals wrote the following response – see below. Katherine is behind the website historynotpropaganda and instigated the e-petition Keep the History Curriculum Politically Neutral. Please sign this petition[…]
What kind of history do you want?
I have just been lucky enough to have a look at a copy of Diana Laffin’s latest A level History book British Society 1945. Its part of the Enquiring History series for A level.Quickly thumbing through it I am struck by the clever teaching techniques and the interesting content. It[…]
Please respond to the proposed changes to National Curriculum for History
If like me you are still spitting feathers over the history proposals then we need to make sure that we respond to the consultation in the correct manner. Time is quickly ticking away. I heard a sneaky rumour that those people at the DFE (not politicians, the civil servants) are[…]
Oh dear oh dear oh dear! It really did end in lists!?
Oh dear oh dear oh dear!! The drafts of the new National Curriculum for history were published on Thursday…what can I say that hasn’t already been said? I have been speechless since reading them. If you haven’t had a chance to look, you can the proposals here. Read it and weep![…]
The view of the Secret History Teacher: Red, amber and grrrrrrrrrr.
Here is our new blog feature. Rather than have me or Neil post our thoughts, we have asked a secret history teacher to tell us how it is for them at the chalk-face in 2013. Here is the first post. Enjoy. Red, amber and grrrrrrrrrr. You know the feeling, staring at the[…]
Developing a love of art through history
For many people working in schools these are dark days. Everything is being changed. Many of the changes seem to be made on purely ideological grounds. But spare a thought for our colleagues who teach the artistic areas of the curriculum. Less and less children will have access to these[…]
Want to improve your practice and grades at GCSE history? Course you do
Ever wondered what is going on in the best practitioners classrooms at GCSE? How on earth do they ensure that kids make that beloved progress everyone is obsessed with without compromising on certain principles? What do people who set the exam papers think makes good history teaching? Are you concerned[…]
Old fashioned thinking about assessment
It is official: schools are assessment crazy! I recently spoke two teachers who told me that where they teach they have to get their students to produce a levelled piece of work every two weeks!! How mad / crazy / ill informed / laughable / depressing * is that! Where[…]
How James Bond can help your history teaching
I went to see the latest James Bond film last night…cracking. What great entertainment. I love a good Bond. And, to put my neck on the line, I think that Daniel Craig is the best Bond ever. Why? Well for loads of normal reasons. He is hard, tough, well dressed,[…]
A matter of principle
All is quiet. It’s been nearly a month and the government haven’t announced any drastic changes to the school structure, teaching conditions, curriculum or examination system? However, with the half term then Christmas holidays soon to be upon us, there is still plenty of time for new announcements . To[…]
We praise Cottenham Village College for advocating the use of real historians in lessons
It was great to see Cottenham Village College history department highlighted in the TES on Friday (21st September 2012). This report was based on a good practice visit made by ofsted. To view the report click here.The depts message was simple and one which we totally agree with. Teach history[…]
Test membership table
OUR MEMBERSHIP SUBSCRIPTIONS OFFER A GREAT VALUE WAY OF DOWNLOADING OUR LESSON PACKAGES TO ENLIVEN YOUR HISTORY TEACHING. PLUS, YOU’LL HAVE EXCLUSIVE ACCESS TO FEATURE ARTICLES PACKED WITH ORIGINAL IDEAS FOR THE CLASSROOM. Gain full access to the hundreds of new lessons specifically designed to provide you with all the resources you[…]
Questioning
Questioning – how to think like DI Jack Frost Teaching is a funny old job. We spend our days asking tens or even hundreds of questions that we generally know the answers to. Questioning is the strategy that we probably rely on most in our teaching. In every lesson that[…]
How to make history meaningful
‘Bovvered?!’ How to make history meaningful These are just some of the comments made by students when asked why they study history a few years ago. Richard Harris from Reading University and Terry Hayden, from the University of East Anglia asked 1700 students. Clearly some of the responses make sobering reading. Never[…]
Teaching Historical Significance
Whenever a new national curriculum is proposed, it isn’t mathematics or science that make the headlines in the newspapers, it is history. Heavy weight historians speak up about what students should learn in schools. Funny that, when many of them have never stepped inside a classroom in the state sector. They[…]
